Sacrifices for Lent: It's Never Too Late!

Ash Wednesday has come and gone, but it's not too late to participate in Lent, a Christian tradition wherein observers give up a luxury for the 40 days leading up to Easter Sunday.

Even though Lent is Christian, and it's already started, the principle of "you don’t know what you have until it's gone" is still in place, and most Harvard students could benefit from a greater sense of appreciation—or fewer Sunday Sundaes—in their lives. For those looking to get into the spirit of Lent, here are some suggestions of sacrificial offerings, ranked by difficulty.

Harvard gear. On those cold and overcast days, nothing seems more comfortable a pair of Harvard sweats or a Harvard pullover to get you through your classes—you don't have think about you're going to wear, and it says "Harvard" on it, so really you're just showing school spirit, right? Wrong. We all know that you're just relying on the Harvard brand, and when that happens, we become this. So just don't.

HBOGO. HSA somehow thought that because Harvard students are already so productive, we'd need free streaming television and HBO to help us let loose and have fun. The result? A 140% reduction in productivity and a 120% rise in "Girls" viewership (Note: Stats are from this writer's intuition and personal experience). So do yourself a favor, and open a textbook instead of HBO.

HUDS Desserts. We're talking about the apple crisp, the double chocolate chip cookies, the pecan pie, and—you know this one was coming—Sunday Sundaes. This is going to be a hard one, especially if HUDS is also serving some form of tilapia or sole the same day, but if you truly love thyself, you should shy away.

Drunk eating. For some inexplicable and frustrating reason, when it's 2 a.m. on a Saturday night, there's nothing more satisfying than an Insomnia cookie, or a Felipe's quesadilla. If you do give this up, just know that while it may be incredibly upsetting to watch your friends scarf down slices from Noch's, some people are actually giving up their smartphones for Lent. Can you even imagine? So clutch your phone closer and ignore the smell of pizza—you're going to get through this.

Coffee. For you ambitious ones skipping to the bottom of the list, this is only to be attempted by the bravest souls. No coffee means no caffeine, which means that you'll be tired during the day, tired in Lamont, tired during your meetings—giving up coffee is going to involve a fundamental change in the way you work and sleep. You have been warned.